Method of determining types I, II, III, IV or V or methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in a biological sample

ABSTRACT

Disclosed are diagnostic methods for determining a subtype of methicillin-resistant  Staphylococcus aureus  (MRSA) in a biological sample of a mammal. Methods include providing a biological sample of the mammal, performing a PCR analysis of the biological sample, and analyzing the PCR amplicons with respect to their sizes so as to determine for type I, type II, type III, type IV or type V MRSA that may be present in the biological sample. Further example embodiments include using at least one mecA primer pair and/or using at least one  Staphylococcus aureus  nuc primer pair in the PCR analysis. Further disclosed are methods for screening populations for MRSA, and methods of treating a mammal testing positive for Type IV MRSA. Also disclosed are kits for determining a MRSA subtype in a mammal and isolated primers that may be used in the present methods and kits.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application claims the benefit of priority under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) to U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/335,874 filed Jan. 13, 2010, the entire disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

Example embodiments are generally directed to methods of determining types I, II, III, IV or V of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in a biological sample of a mammal, such as a human. More specifically, example embodiments include a multiplex PCR assay where pairs of primers are used to differentiate types I, II, III, IV or V in a single PCR reaction without the burden of performing cell culturing. Additional embodiments are directed to methods for screening for MRSA; methods of treatment; kits for determining MRSA types in a mammal; and isolated primers that may be used in the present methods and kits.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a Staphylococcus aureus variant containing a Staphylococcal Chromosome Cassette (SCC) transposon that has been integrated into the genome of Staphylococcus aureus. There are at least five (5) types of MRSA; namely types I, II, III, IV and V. Types I-III are the hospital associated MRSA (HA-MRSA), with type II being the most prevalent among the HA-MRSA. Types IV-V, together with their expression of the Panton-Valentine Leukocidin (PVL) toxin, represent the community associated-MRSA (CA-MRSA). SCC in HA-MRSA is a larger mobile genetic element (when compared to CA-MRSA) that can incorporate many antibiotic resistance genes against clindamycin or doxycyline. However, CA-MRSA is more virulent than HA-MRSA. MRSA identification and SCC typing are crucial for medical diagnosis. An accurate and speedy assay to identify MRSA and its SCC types at the early stage of bacterial infection is urgently needed, so as to provide an adequate time window for proper antibiotics treatment to save human lives.

SCC integrates into the Staphylococcus aureus genome at a specific site within the orfX gene. The SCC contains numerous genes including, for example, mecA, mecR, mecI, and ccrAB. The mecA gene encodes an alternative penicillin binding protein 2 (PBP2a) that exhibits a lower affinity towards β-lactam antibiotics. The mecR gene encodes a receptor for β-lactam antibiotics, and the mecI gene encodes a transcriptional repressor for the mecA gene. Altogether, the mecA, mecR, and mecI account for the methicllin resistance for Staphylococcus aureus. The ccrAB gene is required for the transposition of the SCC mobile element.

Presently, commercial detection of MRSA involves cell culturing followed by molecular PCR technology. Specifically, Staphylococcus-containing micro-organisms are plated onto Staphylococcal selective and differential media such as Manitol Salt Agar with phenol red or Staphylococcal CHROMAgar. This cell culture procedure allows the selection of Staphylococcus aureus.

After the culture plating, Staphylococcus aureus DNA is isolated and subjected to PCR assay for the presence of the mecA gene. mecA gene is known to exist in the SCC of MRSA, but not in methicillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA). Thus, detection of the mecA gene in the chromosomal DNA of Staphylococcus aureus by PCR or hybridization makes it possible to differentiate MRSA from MSSA. Unfortunately, detection of mecA is not specific for Staphylococcus aureus, because other Staphylococcus spp. may contain SCC that contains mecA. Such Staphylococcus spp. include, for example, coagulase-negative Staphylococcus.

Other alternative means for detecting MRSA involves PCR amplification of the 5′ orfX mecDNA junction. However, mecA gene may loop out from the SCC by gene recombination. When this occurs, false positive results would ensure from the PCR amplification test. U.S. Pat. No. 6,156,507 discloses use of single-pair primers, with the forward exclusively within orf X (IntM) and the reverse within the mecA region. Because SCCmec transposon can pop out from the Staphylococcus aureus, leaving behind a portion of the right extremity (RE) region, this assay is not ideal because it often yields false-positive result. U.S. Pat. No. 2008/0220428 discloses a real-time PCR utilizing multiple primer pairs specifically targeting within orf X and mecA region and the RE region of SCCmec. This assay also yields false-positive results for the same reason.

U.S. Pat. Nos. 2007/0082340, 2008/0227087 and 2006/0252078 similarly disclose use of single-pair primers that target the SCCmec right extremity junction (MREJ) in a PCR reaction. These authors stated their tests are capable of distinguishing twenty (20) MRSA subtypes (i.e., Types I to XX). The '340 and '087 applications specifically target within SCCmec region (i.e., mecA), while '078 application targets regions extended to IntM region as well as 5′ UTR.

U.S. Pat. No. 2006/0252069 discloses a multiplex PCR assay using ccrAB primers. Because SCCmec transposon can exist in Staphylococcus aureu and non-Staphylococcus aureu bacteria (i.e., SCCmec transposon can insert into coagulase-negative Staphylococcus spp.). The '069 method cannot distinguish Staphylococcus aureus from these coagulase-negative staphylococci. A separate test (i.e., cell culture and isolation) is required for determining Staphylococcus aureus identity.

Commercial detection of MRSA involves first identification of MRSA, followed by the SCC typing. With respect to SCC typing, PCR amplification of the hypervariable regions of the ccrAB gene sequence provides useful information in differentiating types I-V. SCC typing may also be performed by PCR amplification at the left arm of the 5′ orfX mecDNA junction. The major disadvantage of these procedures relates to the fact that they take a minimal time period of 24-48 hours. Because physicians are reluctant to provide any empiric therapy until the MRSA SCC typing is identified, these assays involving ccrAB gene and 5′ orfX mecDNA junction are not ideal.

Current methods for distinguishing CA-MRSA from HA-MRSA involve identifying the Staphylococcal Chromosomal Cassette (SCC) mec element, together with the PVL toxin. Hence, CA-MRSA contains a SCCMec type IV cassette and possesses the PVL toxin. In contrast, HA-MRSA contains SCCMec type I-III but lacks PVL toxin. Unfortunately, MRSA PCR assays are unduly complicated. First, one must use multiple oligonucleotide primers to verify: (i) if the isolate is Staphylococcus aureus; (ii) if the isolate contains a mecA gene; and (iii) if the isolate contains a SCC Mec I-IV typing. After this PCR determination, a second PCR reaction must then be performed to show the presence or absence of PVL toxin. Because these are two separate PCR reactions, and involves the use of multiple primers and probes in respective PCR reactions, the entire procedure is both time-consuming and expensive. Such assay is overly complicated and causes delay in the diagnosis of MRSA.

A further method for determining CA-MRSA is multilocus sequence typing (MLST). In MLST, a number of housekeeping genes are sequenced and compared to reference strains. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) is also used in which digested genomic DNA is separated across an agarose gel in several different orientations to gain resolution of large bands of DNA. Both MLST and PFGE are time-consuming and require a high degree of skill in order to successfully interpret results, making them less than optimal for use in medical diagnostics.

All these prior art methodologies suffer either suboptimal specificity or unacceptable long assay time. Accordingly, there is a continuing need for an accurate, rapid and simple PCR assay to detect MRSA and simultaneously determine its SCC types (i.e., types I, II, III, IV or V), preferably in a single PCR reaction.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Example embodiments are directed to diagnostic methods of determining a subtype of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in a biological sample of a mammal, such as a human. Methods include providing a biological sample of the mammal, performing a PCR analysis of the biological sample, and analyzing the PCR amplicons with respect to their sizes so as to determine for type I, type II, type III or type IV MRSA that are present in the biological sample. The PCR analysis may provide determination for type IV MRSA as well.

The PCR analysis includes the use of Staphylococcus aureus species-specific primers. Specifically, a forward primer is located in the 5′ UTR, and reverse primers are located with the SCCmec DNA downstream of the 5′ orfX-mecDNA junction (See, FIG. 1). This unique design of multiple primer pairs offer Staphylococcus aureus species-specificity as well as discrimination for type I, II/IV and III. Distinction between type II from type IV comes from SCCmec Type IV specific primers targeted against the ccrAB genes. Together, the present invention provides novel primer pairs that are useful in a multiplex PCR reaction and allows specific determination of type IV MRSA and confirmation of Staphylococcus aureus, all in a single PCR reaction.

Further example embodiments include using at least one mecA primer pair and/or using at least one Staphylococcus aureus nuc primer pair in the PCR analysis.

Additional embodiments are directed to methods for screening populations to determine a subtype of MRSA in individuals of the population. For example, pre-screening patients upon admission to a medical facility for MRSA may allow facilities to care for patients accordingly. To be effective in preventing MRSA infection, hospitals and healthcare facilities need to correctly sanitize surface areas where patients have direct contact.

Example embodiments are also directed to methods of treating a mammal that include determining a subtype of MRSA in a biological sample and administering an effective amount of at least one non β-lactam antibiotics to a mammal testing positive for Type IV MRSA. Upon detection of MRSA, MRSA can be treated with appropriate alternate antibiotics, such as glycopeptides (vancomycin and teichoplanin), linizolid, and daptomycin.

Also provided are kits for determining a MRSA subtype in a mammal, which kits include Staphylococcus aureus specific primer pairs for detecting MRSA SCC Type, I, II, III and IV; and at least one SCCmec Type IV specific primer pair targeting the ccrAB genes.

Further provided are isolated primers that may be used in the present methods and kits.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

Embodiments of the invention are herein described, by way of non-limiting example, with reference to the following accompanying figures:

FIG. 1 depicts primer locations used in the development of the present assays found within the SCCmec DNA integration site in the orfX gene of Staphylococcus aureus. Noted that the Staphylococcus aureus specific forward primers are in the 5′UTR region and the SCCmec specific primers are downstream of the 5′ orfX-mecDNA junction. SCCmec type IV specific primers are within the ccrAB gene.

FIG. 2 depicts the nucleotide sequences for Staphylococcus aureus specific primers targeting the 5′ UTR and 5′ orf0022 of the Newman Genome sequence (NC009641). Newman genome sequence from 33241 to 34761 bp.

FIG. 3 depicts Staphylococcus aureus cassette chromosome (SCC) mec Type I.

FIG. 4 depicts Staphylococcus aureus cassette chromosome (SCC) mec Type II.

FIG. 5 depicts Staphylococcus aureus cassette chromosome (SCC) mec Type III.

FIG. 6 depicts Staphylococcus aureus cassette chromosome (SCC) mec Type IV.

FIG. 7 depicts Staphylococcus aureus cassette chromosome (SCC) mec Type V.

FIG. 8 depicts nucleotide sequence alignment of the 5′ end of the SCCmec DNA from SCC types I, II, and IV located at the 5′ orfX-mecDNA junction.

FIG. 9 depicts nucleotide sequence alignment of the 5′ end of the SCCmec DNA from SCC types I, II, IV and III located at the 5′ orfX-mecDNA junction.

FIG. 10 depicts the representative results of a PCR reaction using the 5′UTR 1 (SEQ ID NO: 1) forward primer and the mec124a (SEQ ID NO:7) reverse primer.

FIG. 11 depicts the representative results of PCR reactions using the 5′ orf0022 forward primer and the mec124a (SEQ ID NO:7) reverse primer.

FIG. 12 depicts the representative results of PCR reactions using the 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO: 3) forward primer and the mec124b (SEQ ID NO:8) reverse primer.

FIG. 13 depicts the representative results of PCR reactions using the 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO: 3) forward primer and the mec124b (SEQ ID NO:8) and mec3b (SEQ ID NO:11) reverse primers.

FIG. 14 depicts nucleotide sequence alignment of the ccrAB gene.

FIG. 15 depicts primer locations within the ccrAB gene of SCC Type IV.

FIG. 16 depicts the representative results of PCR reactions using the ccrAB-F2 forward primer (SEQ ID NO:15) and the ccrAB-R1 reverse primer (SEQ ID NO:18). In particular, FIG. 16 shows an SCC Typing multiplex PCR reaction with forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and reverse primers, mec124b (SEQ ID NO:8) and mec3b (SEQ ID NO:11) in combination with forward primer ccrAB-F2 (SEQ ID NO:15) and reverse primer ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO:18).

FIG. 17 depicts multiplex PCR reactions using the ccrAB-F4 forward primer (SEQ ID NO:17) and the ccrAB-R1 reverse primer (SEQ ID NO:18). In particular, FIG. 17 shows an SCC Typing multiplex PCR reaction with forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and reverse primers, mec124b (SEQ ID NO:8) and mec3b (SEQ ID NO:11) in combination with forward primer ccrAB-F4 (SEQ ID NO:17) and reverse primer ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO:18).

FIG. 18 depicts multiplex PCR reactions using the ccrAB-F1 (SEQ ID NO:14) forward primer and the ccrAB-R1 reverse primer (SEQ ID NO:18). In particular, FIG. 18 shows an SCC Typing multiplex PCR reaction with forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and reverse primers, mec124b (SEQ ID NO:8) and mec3b (SEQ ID NO:11) in combination with forward primer ccrAB-F1 (SEQ ID NO:14) and reverse primer ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO:18).

FIG. 19 depicts multiplex PCR reactions with the addition of mecA primers. In particular, FIG. 19 shows an SCC Typing multiplex PCR reaction with forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and reverse primers, mec124b (SEQ ID NO:8) and mec3b (SEQ ID NO:11) in combination with forward primer ccrAB-F1 (SEQ ID NO:14) and reverse primer ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO:18), with the addition of the mecA forward and mecA reverse primers. The multiplex reactions successfully amplified and determined the SCCmec Types, the type IV specific ccrAB amplicon, and the presence of the mecA gene.

FIG. 20 depicts the multiplex PCR reactions with the addition of nuc primers.

FIG. 21 depicts the results of a Panton-Valentine Leukocidin real-time PCR assay designed to detect the PVL lukSF gene. This assay follows the SCCmec Type IV determination by the multiplex MRSA detection and typing assay to characterize Community-Associated MRSA.

FIG. 22 depicts a standard curve of PVL real-time PCR. Both the standard curve and patient samples were tested in duplicate.

FIG. 23 is a diagram depicting an example of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) Positive Results.

FIG. 24 is a diagram showing an example of MRSA negative results. MRSA SCC type negative and nuc positive indicate the presence of Methicillin-Susceptible Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA).

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Definitions

Various terms used throughout this specification shall have the definitions set forth herein.

As used herein, the term “MRSA” refers to Staphylococcus aureus that is resistant to methicillin. MRSA contains the SCCmec transposon. MRSA can be subtyped into type I, type II, type III, type IV or type IV.

As used herein, the term “type I MRSA” refers to MRSA that contains SCCmec type I. It is positive for nuc gene and mecA gene.

As used herein, the term “type II MRSA” refers to MRSA that contains SCCmec type II. It is positive for nuc gene and mecA gene.

As used herein, the term “type III MRSA” refers to MRSA that contains SCCmec type III. It is positive for nuc gene and mecA gene.

As used herein, the term “type IV MRSA” refers to MRSA that contains SCCmec type III. It is positive for ccrAB gene, nuc gene and mecA gene.

As used herein, the term “HA-MRSA” refers to MRSA that contains SCCmec type I, II and III.

As used herein, the term “CA-MRSA” refers to MRSA that contains SCCmec type IV and is positive for PVL toxin.

As used herein, the term “orfX” refers to a Staphylococcus aureus specific gene and represents the site where SCCmec transposon integration occurs.

As used herein, the term “SCCmec DNA” refers to Staphylococcus Cassette Chromosome that contains the mecA, mecR, mecI and ccrAB genes.

As used herein, the term “mecA” refers to the methicillin resistant gene that encodes the low affinity penicillin binding protein 2 (PBP2a) and it renders the β-lactam resistance to the Staphylococcus aureus.

As used herein, the term “ccrAB” refers to the gene that encodes transposase/integrase and allows SCC to be a Mobile Genetic Element.

As used herein, the term “nuc” refers to the Staphylococcus aureus specific gene.

As used herein, “a” or “an” may mean one or more. As used herein, “another” may mean at least a second or more.

As used herein, the term “multiplex polymerase chain reaction” or “multiplex PCR” is a PCR reaction that consists of multiple primer sets within a single PCR mixture to produce amplicons of varying sizes that are specific to different DNA sequences. By targeting multiple genes at once, additional information may be gained from a single test run that otherwise would require several times the reagents and more time to perform.

As used herein, the term “primer” is an oligonucleotide or pair of oligonucleotides used to direct an activity to a region of nucleic acid. With PCR, a primer or pair of primers defines the area of the genome to be amplified.

As used herein, the term “OneSwab®” refers to a unique, non-invasive, highly stable specimen collection and transport platform proprietary to Medical Diagnostic Laboratories, LLC. OneSwab® platform consists of polyester fiber swab, liquid transport medium and polyethylene transport vial.

The aspects, advantages and/or other features of example embodiments of the invention will become apparent in view of the following detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. It should be apparent to those skilled in the art that the described embodiments of the present invention provided herein are merely exemplary and illustrative and not limiting. Numerous embodiments of modifications thereof are contemplated as falling within the scope of the present invention and equivalents thereto. All publications, patent applications, patents, and other references mentioned herein are incorporated by reference in their entirety.

In describing example embodiments, specific terminology is employed for the sake of clarity. However, the embodiments are not intended to be limited to this specific terminology.

Currently, there are a number of methods to identify MRSA. These assays involve the determination if the bacterial species may contain a transposon called a Staphylococcal Cassette Chromosome (SCC), which contains the mecA resistance gene that results in β-lactam resistance. The SCCmec DNA integrates into a specific site within the orfX gene of the Staphylococcus aureus genome (See, FIG. 1). The SCCmec DNA contains a number of genes that are important in transposition of this mobile genetic element such as the ccrA and ccrB genes. The SCC also contains genes that are important for the expression of an alternative Penicillin Binding Protein 2 (PBP2′ or PBP2a). The PBP2a is encoded by the mecA gene and regulated by the mecI and mecR proteins. The mecA protein when expressed in Staphylococcus provides the cell resistance to methicillin and other β-lactam type antibiotics.

The SCC can be found in a number of Staphylococcus species in addition to Staphylococcus aureus. These non-Staphylococcus aureus Staphylococcal species are commonly referred to as coagulase-negative Staphylococcus (CoNS), because they lack this aureus enzyme used for microbiology classification. The CoNS, such as Staphylococcus epidermidis, are common Staphylococcal species that are found as part of our natural skin flora. Therefore it is important to distinguish the presence of SCC in Staphylococcus aureus or MRSA from the other methicillin resistant CoNS (MRCoNS) species.

The present inventors discovered a novel method to determine whether a biological sample may contain Staphylococcus aureus and simultaneously determine if there is presence of types I, II, III, IV, or V of MRSA. Specifically, the present inventors designed a PCR assay where at least three (3) primer pairs are used. A first primer set allows the detection specifically for Staphylococcus aureus and detection of SCCmec types I, II and IV. A second primer set allows the detection of SCCmec type III. A third primer set allows the detection of SCCmec type IV.

With respect to the first primer set, the forward primers are specifically selected in the 5′UTR region. These forward primers, when generate amplicons in a PCR, confirms the presence of are Staphylococcus aureus. Hence, they represent Staphylococcus aureus specific primers. The reverse primers are specifically selected in a region downstream of the 5′ orfX-mecDNA junction. Specifically, reverse primers (such as mec 124a, mec124b or mec124c) provides specificity towards SCCmec type I, II, and IV; and reverse primers (such as mec5a or mec5b) provides specificity towards SCCmec type V (See, Table 2 for details). Thus, the first primer set provides both the specificity for Staphylococcus aureus and MRSA subtypes I, II and IV.

With respect to the second primer set, the forward and reverse primer sets are specifically selected in the ccrAB gene region. The exemplary forward primer and reverse primer include ccrAB-F1 and ccrAB-R1 and ccrAB-F5 and ccrAB-R5. It is noteworthy that slight changes in the primer location results in failures (See, Table 6), indicating the unpredictable nature. Thus, the third primer set provides both the specificity for MRSA subtype IV.

With respect to the third primer set, the forward primers are common to that of the first primer set and are specifically selected in the 5′UTR region. The forward primers are Staphylococcus aureus specific primers. The reverse primers are specifically selected in a region downstream of the 5′ orfX-mecDNA junction. Specifically, reverse primers (such as mec3a or mec3b) provides specificity towards SCCmec type III. Thus, the second primer set provides both the specificity for Staphylococcus aureus and MRSA subtype III.

In one embodiment, the PCR assay is a multiplex PCR assay where three (3) primer sets are used to differentiate types I, II, III, or IV of MRSA.

In another embodiment, the PCR assay further contains a fourth primer set, where the primer set is specific for the mecA gene contained within the transposon called a Staphylococcal Cassette Chromosome (SCC), and results in β-lactam resistance.

In another embodiment, the PCR assay further contains a fifth primer set, where the primer set is specific for the nuc gene contained within the SCC transposon.

Optionally, in another embodiment, an additional primer set may be added the PCR assay in the multiplex PCR assay to differentiate type V of MRSA. With respect to this additional primer set, the forward primers are specifically selected in the 5′UTR region and are Staphylococcus aureus specific (e.g., 5′UTR 3). The reverse primers are specifically selected in a region downstream of the 5′ orfX-mecDNA junction. Specifically, reverse primers (such as mec5a or mec5b) provides specificity towards SCCmec type V. Thus, the optional primer set provides both the specificity for Staphylococcus aureus and MRSA subtype V.

Example embodiments are directed to methods of determining a subtype of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in a biological sample of a mammal, such as a human. Methods include providing a biological sample of the mammal and performing a PCR analysis of the biological sample. The biological sample may include for example, cervical vaginal swab, nasal swab, skin swab, whole blood, saliva, urine, mucus, abscess, and other biological samples that may be extracted from a mammal according to known methods, for example by nasal swab. PCR analysis of the biological sample may be performed on the biological sample in its original form from the mammal, or the biological sample may be processed before PCR analysis of the sample.

One skilled in the art would recognize that because a biological sample often contain multiple microorganisms, its complex nature (contrary to a cultured isolates of a single strain microorganism, for example, a Staphylococcus isolate) often distort the PCR assays that do not have high specificity and sensitivity. The present assay provides high specificity and sensitivity using biological samples directly obtained from patients. Using DNA isolated from a biological sample, the present assay can confirm the presence of Staphylococcus aureus and distinguishes various subtypes of MRSA. The present assay is superior to all prior art PCR assays where they are limited to the use of cultured Staphylococcus isolates (i.e., following culture plating).

The present PCR analysis may include for example, the use of Staphylococcus aureus species-specific primers, primers located in the SCCmec DNA downstream of the 5′ orfX-mecDNA junction, and SCCmec Type IV specific primers targeting the ccrAB genes.

Upon investigating the DNA sequence of the arm of the SCCmec DNA downstream of the 5′ orfX mecDNA junction, the present inventors unexpectedly discovered that the SCC Types I, II, and IV are very similar which lead to the ability to use one reverse primer (mec124) to detect these three types (FIG. 8). Because the sequence of the SCC Type III is very different, this type requires its own reverse primer generating a 622 bp amplicon readily distinguishable from Type I (566 bp) and Type II/IV (668 bp) (FIG. 9).

According to non-limiting example embodiments, the PCR analysis of the biological sample may be a multiplex PCR assay where a plurality of primer pairs are used. Multiplexing of PCR reactions is common. Multiplexing allows an investigator to assay two or more different gene targets in a single reaction through the use of multiple probes or primers, each specific for its own target and each comprising a fluorescent moiety that emits at a unique wavelength. Multiplexing is possible with TaqMan® probes, Molecular Beacons, and Scorpions, as recognized by one skilled in the art. Due to its non-specific binding nature, SYBR® Green may not be amenable to multiplexing.

Typically, a PCR reaction is performed by one of two methods: comparison to a standard curve or comparison of threshold cycle (Ct) values. In the first of these methods, a standard curve of amplification products of a particular DNA is made based on amplification of a series of different, known amounts of a pre-selected nucleic acid. Amplification results of reactions performed on a target nucleic acid are then compared to the standard curve to obtain a quantity, and that quantity can be extrapolated to an amount of the target in the original sample.

In the Ct comparison method for quantitating PCR products, expression of a housekeeping gene (such as actin) is used as a standard against which amplification of a target nucleic acid is compared. Often, in this method, a comparison of expression of the target nucleic acid under two different conditions is performed to determine changes in expression patterns.

In one embodiment, the multiplex PCR assay is performed using at least three (3) primer pairs to identify types I, II, III and IV of MRSA.

In another embodiment, the three (3) primer pairs comprises: (1) a first primer pair that includes a forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO: 3), and a reverse primer selected from the group consisting of mec124a (SEQ ID NO: 7), mec124b (SEQ ID NO: 8), and mec124c (SEQ ID NO: 9); (2) a second primer pair that includes a forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and a reverse primer selected from the group consisting of mec3a (SEQ ID NO: 10), and mec3b (SEQ ID NO: 11); and (3) a third primer pair that includes a forward primer ccrAB-F1 (SEQ ID NO: 14) and a reverse primer ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO: 18), or a forward primer ccrAB-F5 (SEQ ID NO:21) and a reverse primer ccrAB-R5 (SEQ ID NO: 23).

In accordance with the multiplex PCR assay, the first primer pair is specific for SCCmec types I, II and IV, thus permitting the generation of two amplicons with a similar size of about 668 bp (revealing SCCmectype II or IV), and one amplicon with a size of 566 bp (revealing SCCmec type I). The second primer pair is specific for SCCmec type III, permitting the generation of one amplicon with a size of 622 bp (revealing SCCmec type III). The third primer pair is specific type IV, permitting the generation of one amplicon with a size of 334 bp (revealing SCCmec type IV). The different molecular sizes of the amplicons can be conveniently be determined and analyzed in a gel, thus allowing the easy identification for types I, II, III or IV MRSA. The forward primer is selected in the 5′UTR region and it can be the same for the first, second and third primer pairs. A unique property of the forward primer (because of its location within the 5′UTR) conveniently provides Staphylococcus-specificity.

According to non-limiting example embodiments, the PCR analysis of the biological sample may be performed using at least a first primer pair that includes a forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and a reverse primer mec124b (SEQ ID NO: 8). According to example embodiments, the PCR analysis may be performed using a second primer pair that includes a forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and a reverse primer mec3b (SEQ ID NO: 11). According to example embodiments, the PCR analysis may be performed using a second primer pair that includes a third primer pair specific for SCCmec type IV, comprising a forward primer ccrAB-F1 (SEQ ID NO: 14) and a reverse primer ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO: 18).

According to further non-limiting example embodiments, the PCR analysis of the biological sample may be performed using at least (1) a first primer pair that includes a forward primer 5′UTR 4 (SEQ ID NO: 4), and a reverse primer mec3a (SEQ ID NO: 10); and (2) a second primer pair comprising a forward primer ccrAB-F1 (SEQ ID NO: 14) and a reverse primer ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO: 18), or a forward primer ccrAB-F5 (SEQ ID NO: 21) and a reverse primer ccrAB-R5 (SEQ ID NO: 23).

The PCR analysis provides a plurality of amplicons having different sizes. Example methods further include analyzing the PCR amplicons with respect to their different sizes so as to determine for type I, type II, type III or type IV MRSA that are present in the biological sample.

Detection or visualization of the PCR products after separation may be accomplished by techniques known to those skilled in the art. According to example techniques, visualization may be accomplished using ethidium bromide staining and UV light. These methods may include the use of labeled probes specific for the PCR products of interest.

The primer sets identified herein have been found to be superior to other tested primer sets, as discussed further below in the Examples. Examples of failed primer pairs are provided for example in Table 3.

Example embodiments may also include using at least one Staphylococcus aureus nuc primer pair in the PCR analysis. Thus, according to non-limiting example embodiments, the PCR analysis may further use a fourth Staphylococcus aureus specific nuc primer pair that includes a forward primer nuc F1 (SEQ ID NO: 26) and a reverse primer nuc R1 (SEQ ID NO: 27), prior to the detecting step.

Further example embodiments may include using at least one mecA primer pair in the PCR analysis to determine β-lactam resistance in the biological sample. Thus, according to non-limiting example embodiments, the PCR analysis may include the use of a fifth mecA primer pair comprising a forward primer mecA2 forward (SEQ ID NO: 24) and a reverse primer mecA2 reverse (SEQ ID NO: 25), prior to the detecting step.

Additional embodiments are directed to methods for screening populations to determine a subtype of MRSA in individuals of the population. By way of non-limiting example, pre-screening patients upon admission to a medical facility for MRSA may allow facilities to care for patients accordingly and to sanitize appropriately to prevent further spread of the MRSA and infection of others. Hospitals may not be the only population that may benefit from screening methods, however. Screening may be also advantageous in other populations such as schools or communities.

Example methods for screening may include obtaining at least one biological sample from an individual in a population; performing a PCR analysis of the biological sample, using the primer pairs provided herein, which PCR analysis provides a plurality of amplicons having different sizes; and analyzing the PCR amplicons with respect to their different sizes so as to determine for type I, type II, type III or type IV MRSA that are present in the biological sample.

As with other embodiments discussed herein, according to non-limiting example embodiments, the PCR analysis of the biological sample may be performed using at least (1) a first primer pair the includes a forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO: 3), and at least one reverse primer selected from the group consisting of mec124a (SEQ ID NO: 7), mec124b (SEQ ID NO: 8), and mec124c (SEQ ID NO: 9); (2) a second primer pair that includes a forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and at least one reverse primer selected from the group consisting of mec3a (SEQ ID NO: 10), and mec3b (SEQ ID NO: 11); and (3) a third primer pair that includes a forward primer ccrAB-F1 (SEQ ID NO: 14) and a reverse primer ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO: 18), or a forward primer ccrAB-F5 (SEQ ID NO:21 and a reverse primer ccrAB-R5 (SEQ ID NO: 23).

According to non-limiting example embodiments, the PCR analysis of the biological sample may be performed using at least a first primer pair that includes a forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and a reverse primer mec124b (SEQ ID NO: 8). According to example embodiments, the PCR analysis may be performed using a second primer pair that includes a forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and a reverse primer mec3b (SEQ ID NO: 11). According to example embodiments, the PCR analysis may be performed using a second primer pair that includes a third primer pair specific for SCC mec type IV, comprising a forward primer ccrAB-F1 (SEQ ID NO: 14) and a reverse primer ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO: 18).

According to further non-limiting example embodiments, the PCR analysis of the biological sample may be performed using at least (1) a first primer pair that includes a forward primer 5′UTR 4 (SEQ ID NO: 4), and a reverse primer mec3a (SEQ ID NO: 10); and (2) a second primer pair comprising a forward primer ccrAB-F1 (SEQ ID NO: 14) and a reverse primer ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO: 18), or a forward primer ccrAB-F5 (SEQ ID NO: 21) and a reverse primer ccrAB-R5 (SEQ ID NO: 23).

As with other example methods herein, example embodiments may also include using at least one Staphylococcus aureus nuc primer pair and/or at least one mecA primer pair in the PCR analysis.

Methods set forth herein may also include performing real-time PCR on the biological sample of an individual for canine herpes virus; and thereafter performing PCR analysis on the biological sample or on a different portion of the biological sample corresponding to an individual testing positive for canine herpes virus, to determine whether the individual has type IV MRSA.

MRSA strains are characterized by those that are associated with health care facilities such as hospitals and those that are found in the community. These strains are commonly referred to as hospital-associated MRSA (HA-MRSA) and community-associated MRSA (CA-MRSA). HA-MRSA strains have the SCCmec Type I, II, and III DNA. These strains are resistant not only to β-lactam antibiotics but tend to be resistant to other common antibiotics used in the healthcare setting.

CA-MRSA strains have the SCC Type IV and V (type V is rare) and causes a more aggressive MRSA infection due to its association with virulence factors such as Panton-Valentine Leukocidin (PVL) gene and other factors that resist the cells of the human immune system. Currently, in order for a strain to be defined as CA-MRSA, it should possess the SCCmec DNA Type IV and the PVL gene. Although CA-MRSA strains are resistant to the β-lactam antibiotics and cause a more aggressive infection, they tend to be susceptible to most other antibiotics used in healthcare. Therefore it is important to determine HA-MRSA from CA-MRSA strains by determining the SCC molecular typing.

According to non-limiting example methods, if a biological sample in any of the methods herein is determined to have type IV MRSA, the method may further include performing a Panton-Valentine Leukocidin (PVL) real-time PCR assay on the biological sample, to determine if the type IV MRSA is Community Associated-MRSA (CA-MRSA).

Real-time PCR may be performed using exonuclease primers (TaqMan® probes). In such embodiments, the primers utilize the 5′ exonuclease activity of thermostable polymerases such as Taq to cleave dual-labeled probes present in the amplification reaction (See, e.g., Wittwer, C. et al. Biotechniques 22:130-138, 1997). While complementary to the PCR product, the primer probes used in this assay are distinct from the PCR primer and are dually-labeled with both a molecule capable of fluorescence and a molecule capable of quenching fluorescence. When the probes are intact, intramolecular quenching of the fluorescent signal within the DNA probe leads to little signal. When the fluorescent molecule is liberated by the exonuclease activity of Taq during amplification, the quenching is greatly reduced leading to increased fluorescent signal. Non-limiting example fluorescent probes include 6-carboxy-floruescein moiety and the like. Exemplary quenchers include Black Hole Quencher 1 moiety and the like.

In another embodiment, real-time PCR methods may include the use of molecular beacon technology. The molecular beacon technology utilizes hairpin-shaped molecules with an internally-quenched fluorophore whose fluorescence is restored by binding to a DNA target of interest (See, e.g., Kramer, R. et al. Nat. Biotechnol. 14:303-308, 1996).

Real-time PCR methods may also include the use of one or more hybridization probes, which may also be determined by those skilled in the art, in view of this disclosure. Exemplary probes such as the HEX channel and/or FAM channel probes, as understood by one skilled in the art.

A non-limiting example of a PVL assay is discussed in the Examples below. In Example 6, a real-time PCR assay to detect the PVL lukSF gene was designed and validated (See, Table 10; and FIGS. 21 and 22). This assay follows the SCCmec Type IV determination by the multiplex MRSA detection and typing assay to characterize Community-Associated MRSA. In such an assay, the primers may include PVL F-2 (SEQ ID NO: 28), PVL R-2 (SEQ ID NO: 29), and PVL probe-2 (SEQ ID NO: 30).

FIG. 22 depicts a standard curve of PVL real-time PCR. Both the standard curve and the patient samples were tested in duplicate.

Also provided herein are kits for determining a MRSA subtype in a mammal, which kits include at least one Staphylococcus aureus specific primer pair for detecting MRSA SCC Type, I, II, III and IV; and at least one SCCmec Type IV specific primer pair targeting the ccrAB genes.

Further provided herein are kits for performing the methods provided herein, including methods for determining a subtype of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in a mammal. The kits may include for example one or more of the primers or primer pairs provided herein. Example kits may include instructions for using primer pairs in PCR reactions to determine if a mammal has type IV MRSA. Example kits may include at least one amplification primer selective for the mec gene complex and the ccr gene complex. Further examples may include at least one component for performing a Panton-Valentine Leukocidin (PVL) real-time PCR assay, to further determine if type IV MRSA is Community Associated-MRSA (CA-MRSA).

Example embodiments are also directed to methods of treating a mammal that include determining a subtype of MRSA in a biological sample by the methods herein, and administering an effective amount of at least one non β-lactam antibiotics to a mammal testing positive for Type IV MRSA. Upon detection of MRSA, MRSA can be treated with appropriate alternate antibiotics, such as glycopeptides (e.g., vancomycin, teichoplanin, telavancin, ramoplanin, decaplanin, linezolid, daptomycin and the like).

Administration of non β-lactam antibiotics may include administration in any suitable form and by any method known to those skilled in the art. For example, formulations may include tablets, capsules, IV formulations, etc, and may include various excipients or potentially other active ingredients. The appropriate formulation including at least one non β-lactam antibiotic(s) to be administered, may be determined by a skilled practitioner, such as a medical doctor, upon determining that a patient tests positive for Type IV MRSA using the present methods.

An “effective amount” for treating Type IV MRSA of a mammal testing positive for Type IV MRSA would be known by and/or may be determined by those skilled in the art, such as medical doctors. The determination of which antibiotic(s) to use in treating a patient, and in what amount, may be determined for example based on the age and/or weight of the mammal, other medications the mammal may be on or recently taken off of, other possible medical conditions, allergies, and other factors known to those skilled in the art, etc.

Further provided are isolated primers that may be used in the present methods and kits. By way of non-limiting example embodiment, provided herein are isolated SCCmec type IV specific ccrAB primers selected from the group consisting of ccrAB-F1 (SEQ ID NO: 14), ccrAB-F5 (SEQ ID NO: 21), ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO: 18), and ccrAB-R5 (SEQ ID NO: 23).

Also provided are isolated oligonucleotide primers having a nucleotide sequence consisting essentially of a sequence selected from the group consisting of SEQ ID NO: 3, SEQ ID NO: 4, SEQ ID NO: 7, SEQ ID NO: 8, SEQ ID NO: 9, SEQ ID NO: 10, SEQ ID NO: 11, SEQ ID NO: 24, SEQ ID NO: 25, SEQ ID NO: 26, SEQ ID NO: 27, SEQ ID NO: 28, and SEQ ID NO: 29, which are the sequences for the following primers provided herein; 5′UTR 3, 5′UTR 4, mec124a, mec124b, mec124c, mec3a, mec3b, mecA2 forward, mecA2 reverse, nucF1, nucR1, PVL F2, and PVL R2. These primers may be made by methods known to those skilled in the art.

An advantage of the present invention is that the present assay provides a simple and sensitive screening assay for determining MRSA Types I-IV directly from a patient's biological sample. A majority of previously studies utilize MRSA clinical isolate clones for development of the screening assays. These assays, when applied to biological samples, may cross-react with non-Staphylococcus aureus species that contain SCCmec. This is because a biological sample obtained a patient often contains multiple species of microorganisms, including many non-Staphylococcus aureus species that may contain SCCmec. The present assay is superior because of our unique design of primer sets that offer simultaneous determination for Staphylococcus aureus species as well as MRSA subtyping.

Another advantage of the present invention is that while the present assay uses a biological sample directly obtained from patients, it can also uses clinical isolates. The present assay is proven to be a much sensitive and accurate test and has clinical application in diagnosis of patient populations.

Another advantage of the present invention is that the present assay involves a multiplex PCR assay having a minimum number of primer pairs which in turn reduce possible interference among the primer pairs (e.g., competition for reagents). The developed multiplex assay conveniently provides one (1) test reaction for simultaneous determination of various MRSA subtypes. It is well recognized by one skill in the art that use of multiple vials with multiple single primer pairs requires additional optimization and increases in cost and time. The present assay provides a physician rapid determination for Type IV MRSA in order for antibiotic intervention to occur and save human lives.

Another advantage of the present invention includes the use of an additional primer set that targets the PVL gene. The combined use of these primers provides additional information for MRSA subtyping and determination of community-associated MRSA (i.e., presence of PVL toxin).

Another advantage of the present invention includes the use of an additional primer set that targets mecA gene. The presence of a mecA amplicon ensures the presence of mecA gene (which is responsible for methicillin resistance) and reduces the likely of false-positive results.

Another advantage of the present invention includes the use of an additional primer set that targets the nuc gene that provides confirmatory identity of Staphylococcus aureus.

The following examples were carried out using standard methods, and are provided to further illustrate various non-limiting embodiments and techniques. It should be understood, however, that these examples are meant to be illustrative and do not limit the scope of the claims. As would be apparent to skilled artisans, many variations and modifications are intended to be encompassed within the spirit and scope of the invention.

EXPERIMENTAL STUDIES

Background

Currently there are a number of methods to identify Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). These assays involve the determination of bacterial species may contain a transposon called a Staphylococcal Cassette Chromosome (SCC), which contains the mecA resistance gene that results in β-lactam resistance. The SCCmec DNA integrates into a specific site within the orfX gene of the Staphylococcus aureus genome (FIG. 1). The SCCmec DNA contains a number of genes that are important in transposition of this mobile genetic element such as the ccrA and ccrB genes. The SCC also contains genes that are important for the expression of an alternative Penicillin Binding Protein 2 (PBP2′ or PBP2a). The PBP2a is encoded by the mecA gene and regulated by the mecI and mecR proteins. The mecA protein when expressed in Staphylococcus provides the cell resistance to methicillin and other β-lactam type antibiotics.

The SCC can be found in a number of Staphylococcus species in addition to Staphylococcus aureus. These non-Staphylococcus aureus Staphylococcal species are commonly referred to as coagulase-negative Staphylococcus (CoNS), because they lack this aureus enzyme used for microbiology classification. The CoNS, such as Staphylococcus epidermidis, are common Staphylococcal species that are found as part of our natural skin flora. It is important to distinguish the presence of SCC in Staphylococcus aureus or MRSA from the other methicillin-resistant CoNS (MRCoNS) species.

Example 1 Staphylococcus aureus Detection and MRSA Types I, II, III, IV or V

In this study, we sought to design a conventional PCR assay that would specifically detect Staphylococcus aureus and simultaneously determine the types of MRSA. To achieve this goal, we selected a gene region that is Staphylococcus aureus specific and another gene region that allows differentiation of the SCC types. To that end, we chose the 5′ untranslated region (5′UTR) of the orfX gene that could be specific for detection of Staphylococcus aureus (See, FIG. 1). We also chose the SCCmec specific region located at the left arm of the 5′ orf X-mecDNA junction (See, FIG. 1). Forward primers were designed at the 5′UTR and reverse primers at the left arm of the 5′ orfX-mecDNA junction. Our approach is unique and distinct from all prior art attempts. To the best of the present inventors' knowledge, there is no report suggesting the use of primer pairs in MRSA detection assay that offer simultaneous advantages of: (i) specificity for Staphylococcus aureus, and (ii) MRSA subtypes.

A) Forward Primers: We designed five (5) forward primers in the 5′UTR of the orfX gene, and one (1) forward primer at the 3′ end of an open reading frame (orf0022) of the Newman strain genome sequence immediately upstream from orfX (FIG. 1). The nucleotide sequence for all the forward primers is listed in Table 1. All of these six (6) forward primers are specific for Staphylococcus aureus (FIG. 1, and Table 1).

TABLE 1 Staphylococcus aureus species-specific primers Primer Nucleotide Sequence Name 5′ to 3′ SEQ ID NO. 5′UTR 1 GTT GAT AAC AAT TTG GAG SEQ ID NO. 1 GAC CAA ACG AC 5′UTR 2     GAT AAC AAT TTG GAG SEQ ID NO. 2 GAC CAA ACG 5′UTR 3 CTT GTG GAT AAC TGG AAA SEQ ID NO. 3 GTT G 5′UTR 4 GAG GGA ACA GTG TGA ACA SEQ ID NO. 4 AG 5′UTR 5 CAC TAA AAA TCG GGC ATA SEQ ID NO. 5 AAT GTC AGG 5′orf0022 CGA CTG TAC GAC GTA GAA SEQ ID NO. 6 AAG CTA GC

We showed the nucleotide sequences of the Staphylococcus aureus genome starting from the end of the orf0022 to the beginning of the orf0024 (See, FIG. 2). FIG. 2 also shows the exact placement of the six (6) forward primers designed to target at the 5′ UTR and the 5′ orf0022 of the Newman Genome sequence (NC009641). Newman genome sequence from 33241 to 34761 bp. The gDNA sequence of the SA0022 open reading frame (orf) to the 5′ untranslated region (UTR) of orfX, to the orfX, to the 3′ UTR of orfX, to the SA0024 orf. The site of the SCCmec DNA integration in the orfX gene is indicated in bold in FIG. 2. The transcriptional start site of orfX is indicated by the nucleotide sequence in italics atttggaggaccaaacgac (SEQ ID NO: 31). The translational start site is indicated by the bold atg. Primer sequences are indicated by underlines and 5′ to 3′ direction is indicated by the arrows.

B) Reverse Primers: We next designed a total of seven (7) reverse primers to anneal to the arm of the SCCmec DNA downstream of the 5′ orfX-mecDNA junction (FIG. 1). The nucleotide sequence of these reverse primers is listed in Table 2 below. Out of the seven (7) reverse primers, three (3) were designed for SCCmec types I, II and IV, two (2) were designed for SCCmec type III and another two (2) were designed for SCCmec type V (FIG. 1).

(i) SCCmec Type I

Reverse Primers: mec124a, mec124b, and mec124c: We designed three (3) reverse primers for SCCmec type I. FIG. 3 shows the exact placement of the three (3) reverse primers (i.e., mec124a, mec124b, and mec124c) located at the left arm of the 5′ orfX-mec DNA junction of the Staphylococcus aureus cassette chromosome (SCC) mec Type I (AB033763). Nucleotide sequence of the 5′ end of the SCCmec DNA from SCC type I is located at the 5′ orfX-mecDNA junction. Primers mec124a (SEQ ID NO:7), mec124b (SEQ ID NO:8), and mec124c (SEQ ID NO:9) were designed to hybridize to types I, II, and IV. The primer sequences are indicated by underlines and 5′ to 3′ direction is indicated by the arrows in FIG. 3.

(ii) SCCmec Type II

Reverse Primers: mec124a, mec124b, and mec124c: We designed three (3) reverse primers for SCCmec type II. FIG. 4 shows the exact placement of the three (3) reverse primers (i.e., mec124a, mec124b, and mec124c) located at the left arm of the 5′ orfX-mec DNA junction of the Staphylococcus aureus cassette chromosome (SCC) mec Type II (D86934). Nucleotide sequence of the 5′ end of the SCCmec DNA from SCC type II located at the 5′ orfX mecDNA junction. Primers mec124a (SEQ ID NO:7), mec124b (SEQ ID NO:8), and mec124c (SEQ ID NO:9) were designed to hybridize to types I, II, and IV. The primer sequences are indicated by underlines and 5′ to 3′ direction is indicated by the arrows in FIG. 4.

(iii) SCCmec Type III

Reverse Primers: mec3a and mec3b: We designed two (2) reverse primers for SCCmec type III. FIG. 5 shows the exact placement of the two (2) reverse primers (i.e., mec3a and mec3b) located at the left arm of the 5′ orfX-mec DNA junction of the Staphylococcus aureus cassette chromosome (SCC) mec Type III (AB037671). Nucleotide sequence of the 5′ end of the SCCmec DNA from SCC type IIII located at the 5′ orfX mecDNA junction. Primers mec3a (SEQ ID NO:10) and mec3b (SEQ ID NO:11) were designed to hybridize to type III only producing a product distinguishable from the other SCC types. The primer sequences are indicated by underlines and 5′ to 3′ direction is indicated by the arrows in FIG. 5.

(iv) SCCmec Type IV

Reverse Primers: mec124a, mec124b and mec124c: We designed three (3) reverse primers for SCCmec type IV. FIG. 6 shows the exact placement of the three (3) reverse primers (i.e., mec124a, mec124b, and mec124c) located at the left arm of the 5′ orfX-mec DNA junction of the Staphylococcus aureus cassette chromosome (SCC) mec Type IV (AB063172). Nucleotide sequence of the 5′ end of the SCCmec DNA from SCC type IV located at the 5′ orfX mecDNA junction. Primers mec124a (SEQ ID NO:7), mec124b (SEQ ID NO:8), and mec124c (SEQ ID NO:9) were designed to hybridize to types I, II, and IV. The primer sequences are indicated by underlines and 5′ to 3′ direction is indicated by the arrows in FIG. 6.

(v) SCCmec Type V

Reverse Primers: mec5a and mec5b: We designed two (2) reverse primers for SCCmec type V. FIG. 7 shows the exact placement of the two (2) reverse primers (i.e., mec5a and mec5b) located at the left arm of the 5′ orfX-mec DNA junction of the Staphylococcus aureus cassette chromosome (SCC) mec Type V (AB121219). Nucleotide sequence of the 5′ end of the SCCmec DNA from SCC type V located at the 5′ orfX mecDNA junction. Primers mec5a (SEQ ID NO:12) and mec5b (SEQ ID NO:13) were designed to hybridize to type V only producing a product distinguishable from the other SCC types. The primer sequences are indicated by underlines and 5′ to 3′ direction is indicated by the arrows in FIG. 7.

Example 2

A) Primer Pairs Used in Multiplex PCR Assay

Using the primer pairs (i.e., forward primers and reverse primers) designed in Example 1, we performed multiplex PCR reactions to detect MRSA and its typing. In these multiplex PCR reactions, three (3) primer pairs were used: (i) a first primer pair that included one of the 5′UTR forward primer and one of the reverse primer specific for SCCmec type I, II and IV; (ii) a second primer pair that included one of the 5′UTR forward primer and one of the reverse primer specific for SCCmec type III; and (iii) a third primer pair that included one of the 5′UTR forward primer and one of the reverse primer specific for SCCmec type V.

(i) SCCmec DNA Types I, II and IV

When we performed the nucleotide sequence alignments of the most prevalent types of SCCmec DNA, types I, II, III, and IV. It was determined that the left arm 5′ end of the SCCmec DNA of types I, II, and IV were almost identical, except that there was a 102 bp deletion found within type I. We took advantage of such deletion and utilized it in the assay for type I identification by size discrimination (FIG. 8). Next, we specifically aligned the nucleotide sequence of the 5′ end of the SCCmec DNA from SCC types I, II, and IV located at the left arm 5′ orfX mecDNA junction (FIG. 8). Primers mec124a (SEQ ID NO:7), mec124b (SEQ ID NO:8), and mec124c (SEQ ID NO:9) were designed to hybridize to types I, II, and IV. The type I deletion allows for the size discrimination of type I from types II and IV. Primer sequences are indicated by underlines and 5′ to 3′ direction is indicated by the arrows as in FIG. 8.

(ii) SCCmec DNA Types III and V

Fortuitously, the present inventors discovered that only one (1) reverse primer would be needed to amplify type I, II and IV, while a separate reverse primer was needed to amplify type III due to significant sequence differences (See FIG. 9). An additional reverse primer was designed to anneal to SCC Type V. It should be noted that SCC Type V is a rare type of MRSA and was not tested in this study.

The nucleotide sequence alignment of the 5′ end of the SCCmec DNA from SCC types I, II, IV and III located at the 5′ orfX mecDNA junction is depicted in FIG. 9. As indicated above, types I, II, and IV sequences are identical except for the 102 bp deletion found in type I. Primers mec124a (SEQ ID NO:7), mec124b (SEQ ID NO:8), and mec124c (SEQ ID NO:9) were designed to hybridize to types I, II, and IV. The type I deletion allows for the size discrimination of type I from types II and IV. Type III sequence is significantly different (non-shaded nucleotides) from types I, II, and IV as shown by the shaded nucleotides which indicates sequence identity. Primers mec3a (SEQ ID NO:10) and mec3b (SEQ ID NO:11) were designed to hybridize to type III only producing a product distinguishable from the other SCC types. The primer sequences are indicated by underlines and 5′ to 3′ direction is indicated by the arrows (FIG. 9).

TABLE 2 Primers located with the SCCmec DNA downstream of the 5′orfX-mecDNA junction Primer Nucleotide Sequence Name 5′ to 3′ SEQ ID NO. Primers for SCCmec types I, II, and IV mec124a GTC AAA AAT CAT GAA CCT CAT SEQ ID NO. 7 TAC TTA TG mec124b GAC TGC GGA GGC TAA CTA TGT C SEQ ID NO. 8 mec124c GAA CTT TGC TTC ACT ATA AGT SEQ ID NO. 9 ATT CAG Primers for SCCmec type III mec3a ATT TCA TAT ATG TAA TTC CTC SEQ ID NO. 10 CAC ATC TC mec3b CGT ATG ATA TTG CAA GGT ATA SEQ ID NO. 11 ATC C Primers for SCCmec type V mec5a GCT TTT TCC ACT CCC ATT TCT SEQ ID NO. 12 TCC mec5b CTA GTC TTC TTA ACC ATT CAC SEQ ID NO. 13

B) Multiplex PCR Reactions

By using the three (3) primer pairs, we generated in the present multiplex PCR reactions several amplicons with different molecular sizes. The presence of these amplicons indicates that: (i) the specific detection of Staphylococcus aureus, and (ii) the varying sizes of the amplicons that permit simultaneous determination of the MRSA types.

(i) 5′ UTR1 and mec124a Primer Pair Failed

In a multiplex PCR experiment using a prime pair (i.e., forward primer was 5′ UTR1 (SEQ ID NO:1) and reverse primer (SEQ ID NO:7) was mec124a) and a positive control (i.e., MRSA SCCmec type II), we observed the generation of an amplicon in lane 1. Specifically, the PCR reaction was able to amplify the correct product from a MRSA SCC Type II strain (lane 1; 668 bp) (FIG. 10). The presence of this amplicon suggests that there was MRSA SCCmec type II (FIG. 10). However, this primer pair is not specific for MRSA, because it cross-reacted with MSSA strain (lane 4, FIG. 10). Therefore, this particular primer pair is not useful.

(ii) 5′ orf0022 and mec124a Primer Pair Failed

In another multiplex PCR experiment using another primer pair (i.e., forward primer was 5′ orf0022 (SEQ ID NO:6) and reverse primer was mec124a (SEQ ID NO:7)) and a positive control (i.e., MRSA SCCmec type II), it failed to generate an amplicon specific for the MRSA SCCmec type II (lane 1, FIG. 11). Moreover this primer set cross-reacted with methicillin-resistant coagulase-negative Staphylococcus epidermidis (MRCoNS) (arrow, lane 3, FIG. 11) and produced some low molecular weight background bands (lane 2 and 4, FIG. 11). Therefore, our result indicates that this particular primer pair is not useful. These data indicate primer pair design in multiplex PCR reactions is highly unpredictable and that not every primer pair is not equivalent in terms of its ability to generate an amplicon.

(iii) Additional Primer Pairs That Failed

The present inventors performed additional multiplex PCR reactions and examined many possible permutations of primer pairs that we designed in Examples 1 and 2. Upon testing these primer pairs in multiplex PCR reactions, we surprisingly found that many of the primer pairs cannot function to detect Staphylococcus aureus, and majority of the designed primer pairs failed to differentiate SCC Types I, II, III, and IV (Table 3).

All the multiplex PCR reaction results using different forward and reverse primer combinations are summarized in Table 3. Notably, the basis for many of the PCR failure is found to include: (i) amplified only background bands with methicillin susceptible Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA) (FIG. 10); (ii) cross-reacted with MRCoNS (FIG. 11); and (iii) unable to amplify any products (FIG. 11).

TABLE 3 Failed primer pairs that had amplification issues upon testing Staphylococcus aureus species-specific primers with primers located with the SCCmec DNA downstream of the 5′orfX-mecDNA junction. 5′ UTR Primer SCCmec DNA Primer Amplification Issues 5′ UTR 1 (SEQ ID NO: 1) mec124a (SEQ ID NO: 7) Faint Amplification, background 5′ UTR 1 (SEQ ID NO: 1) mec3a (SEQ ID NO: 10) No Amplification 5′ UTR 2 (SEQ ID NO: 2) mec124a (SEQ ID NO: 7) Background 5′ UTR 2 (SEQ ID NO: 2) mec124b (SEQ ID NO: 8) Background 5′ UTR 2 (SEQ ID NO: 2) mec124c (SEQ ID NO: 9) Background 5′ UTR 2 (SEQ ID NO: 2) mec3a (SEQ ID NO: 10) Background 5′ UTR 2 (SEQ ID NO: 2) mec3b (SEQ ID NO: 11) Background 5′ UTR 4 (SEQ ID NO: 4) mec124a (SEQ ID NO: 7) Background 5′ UTR 4 (SEQ ID NO: 4) mec124b (SEQ ID NO: 8) MRCoNS cross-reactivity 5′ UTR 4 (SEQ ID NO: 4) mec124c (SEQ ID NO: 9) No Amplification 5′ UTR 4 (SEQ ID NO: 4) mec3b (SEQ ID NO: 11) MRCoNS cross-reactivity 5′ UTR 5 (SEQ ID NO: 5) mec124a (SEQ ID NO: 7) Faint Amplification, Background 5′ UTR 5 (SEQ ID NO: 5) mec3a (SEQ ID NO: 10) No Amplification 3′ orf 0022 (SEQ ID NO: 6) mec124a (SEQ ID NO: 7) No Amplification 3′ orf 0022 (SEQ ID NO: 6) mec3a (SEQ ID NO: 10) No Amplification

Example 3

In this series of study, we examined in a multiplex PCR reaction using a new primer pair (i.e., forward primer was 5′ UTR3 (SEQ ID NO:3) and reverse primer was mec124b (SEQ ID NO:8). We used two (2) positive control strains (i.e., MRSA SCCmec type I and MRSA SCCmec type IV) in the PCR reaction.

(i) 5′ UTR 3 (Forward Primer) and mec124a, b, and c (Reverse Primers): Differentiate SCCmec Type I and SCCmec Type IV

To our surprise and unexpectedly, while many forward primers near the 5′UTR region have failed (Table 3), the forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO: 3) was able to correctly amplify the target sequence, specifically detecting MRSA SCC Type I, II, and IV when used in combination with reverse primer mec124a (SEQ ID NO:7), mec124b (SEQ ID NO:8), or mec124c (SEQ ID NO:9) (FIG. 12).

FIG. 12 summarizes the PCR reaction results. The forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and reverse primer mec124b (SEQ ID NO:8) was able to amplify the correct amplicon product from a MRSA SCC Type I strain (lane 1, FIG. 12) and another amplicon from a MRSA SCC Type IV strain (lane 3, FIG. 12). Note that the amplicon for the MRSA SCCmec type I was smaller than that of MRSA SCCmec type IV (500 bp vs. 668 bp). Thus, this particular primer pair permits the detection of Staphylococcus aureus and simultaneously allows the differentiation between MRSA SCCmec type I and MRSA SCCmec type IV.

In addition, we observed that this primer pair did not cross-react with MRSA SCCmec type III (lane 2, FIG. 12), indicating a high degree of specificity. We therefore concluded that this particular primer pair is useful for MRSA detection and typing.

(ii) 5′ UTR 3 (Forward Primer) and mec3a, and mec3b (Reverse Primers): Differentiate SCCmec Type III

In another study of multiplex PCR, we found that 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO:3) (forward prier) was also able to amplify MRSA SCC Type III in combination with reverse primers mec3a (SEQ ID NO:10) and mec3b (SEQ ID NO:11), either individually or multiplexed with a mec124 reverse primer (FIG. 13).

(iii) 5′ UTR 4 (Forward Primer) and mec3a (Reverse Primer): Differentiate SCCmec Type III

In yet another study, we found that 5′UTR 4 (SEQ ID NO: 4) forward primer and mec3a (SEQ ID NO:10) reverse primer was able to amplify MRSA SCC Type III. However, the 5′UTR 4 (SEQ ID NO:4) primer did not work with the mec124 reverse primers for a successful multiplex reaction.

A summary of the PCR reaction results using the forward and reverse primer combinations that worked is provided in Table 4.

(iii) 5′ UTR 3 (Forward Primer) and mec124b and mec3b (Reverse Primers): Differentiate SCCmec Type I, II, III, and IV

FIG. 13 depicts multiplex PCR reactions using the 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO:3) forward primer and the mec124b (SEQ ID NO:8) and mec3b (SEQ ID NO:11) reverse primers. The PCR reaction with forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and reverse primers, mec124b (SEQ ID NO:8) and mec3b (SEQ ID NO:11), was able to clearly amplify the correct product from MRSA SCC Type I, Type III, Type IV, and Type II strains (lanes 1, 2, 3, and 4, respectively, FIG. 13) without background. This primer pair did not cross-react with MSSA or MRCoNS (lane 5 and 6, FIG. 13).

TABLE 4 Primer pairs that successfully amplified upon testing Staphylococcus aureus species- specific primers with primers located with the SCCmec DNA downstream of the 5′orfX-mecDNA junction. 5′ UTR SCCmec DNA Primer Primer Amplification 5′ UTR 3 mec124a Good (SEQ ID NO: 3) (SEQ ID NO: 7) 5′ UTR 3 mec124b Best (SEQ ID NO: 3) (SEQ ID NO: 8) 5′ UTR 3 mec124c Good (SEQ ID NO: 3) (SEQ ID NO: 9) 5′ UTR 3 mec3a Good (SEQ ID NO: 3) (SEQ ID NO: 10) 5′ UTR 3 mec3b Best (SEQ ID NO: 3) (SEQ ID NO: 11) 5′ UTR 4 mec3a (SEQ ID NO: 4) (SEQ ID NO: 10) Good

Example 4

As discussed above, MRSA strains are characterized by those that are associated with health care facilities such as hospitals and those that are found in the community. These strains are commonly referred to as hospital-associated MRSA (HA-MRSA) and community-associated MRSA (CA-MRSA). CA-MRSA strains have the SCC Type IV and V (type V is rare) and causes a more aggressive MRSA infection due to its association with virulence factors such as Panton-Valentine Leukocidin (PVL) gene and other factors that resist the cells of the human immune system.

Currently, in order for a strain to be defined as CA-MRSA, it must possess the SCCmec DNA Type IV, or V and the PVL gene. Although CA-MRSA strains are resistant to the β-lactam antibiotics and cause a more aggressive infection, they tend to be susceptible to most other antibiotics used in healthcare. Therefore it is important to determine HA-MRSA from CA-MRSA strains by determining the SCC molecular typing.

It is important to determine the SCCmec DNA type before one can determine whether a MRSA strain is HA-MRSA or CA-MRSA. Upon investigating the DNA sequence of the arm of the SCCmec DNA downstream of the 5′ orfX mecDNA junction, the present inventors found that the SCC Types I, II, and IV are very similar which lead to the ability to use one reverse primer (mec124) to detect these three types (FIG. 8).

Because the sequence of the SCC Type III is very different, this type requires its own reverse primer generating a 622 bp amplicon readily distinguishable from Type I (566 bp) and Type II/IV (668 bp)(FIG. 9).

Interestingly, the present inventors discovered that type I has a 102 bp deletion which lead to a smaller 566 bp amplicon which made type I distinguishable for type II and type IV (FIG. 8). Type II and Type IV are the same size (668 bp). In order to determine between Type II and Type IV, the present inventors designed primers (Table 5) that would specifically amplify the ccrAB gene from the Type IV SCCmec DNA (FIG. 1; see “SCCmec type IV specific ccrAB primers”).

TABLE 5 SCCmec Type IV specific primers targeting the ccrAB genes. Primer Nucleotide Sequence Name 5′ to 3′ SEQ ID NO. ccrAB F1 GTT GAA AGA TGC AAA SEQ ID NO. 14 AGA AGG CA ccrAB F2 CAG ACC TGA GCT CCA SEQ ID NO. 15 ACG TAT G ccrAB F3 CGT GGT ATT TCA GGT SEQ ID NO. 16 AAA TCT ATG ccrAB F4 GTA TCT ATG TAC GTG SEQ ID NO. 17 TAT CAA CAG ccrAB R1 GTT AAT CAT TAG CTC SEQ ID NO. 18 GTG TTT ACT ATC ccrAB R2 GTG ACA TAT CCT TTG SEQ ID NO. 19 TGA TTC ccrAB R3 CAA ATT GAA TTT TGC SEQ ID NO. 20 CGA TAT AG ccrAB F5 AGA TAG TAA ACA CGA SEQ ID NO. 21 GCT AAT GAT TAA C ccrAB R4 CTA CAT GAA TAG TAA SEQ ID NO. 22 CGA ATA C ccrAB R5 GCC GAA CAT ACT TTG SEQ ID NO. 23 GAA CCC TTG TTC CG

We aligned and compared the nucleotide sequence of the ccrAB gene that is different between the MRSA Type IV and Type II ccrAB genes (FIG. 14). Primers were designed to utilize these sequence differences so that they would anneal to and amplify Type IV specific ccrAB gene (FIGS. 14 and 15).

The nucleotide sequence alignment of the ccrAB gene is depicted in FIG. 14. The ccrAB gene was found within the two MRSA SCC type IV strains (AB06372 and AB097677) and two MRSA SCC type II strains (D86937 and AJ810120). Shaded nucleotides indicate sequence differences. Boxed shaded bold nucleotides indicate type IV specific differences. Primer sequences are indicated by underlines and 5′ to 3′ direction is indicated by the arrows.

FIG. 15 depicts primer locations within the ccrAB gene of SCC Type IV. The gray bars represents the location of nucleotide differences between SCC Type IV subtypes IVa (AB063172), IVb (AB063173), IVc (AB096217), IVd (AB097677) and SCC Type II subtypes IIa (D86937) and IIe (AJ810120) of the ccrAB gene.

We sought to design primers in order to amplify a product less than 500 bp to make it easily distinguishable from the SCC Typing amplicons. Upon testing these ccrAB forward and reverse primer pairs in PCR reactions, we found that the majority of the primer pairs either cross-reacted with SCC Type II ccrAB (FIG. 16) or amplified non-specific background bands from human DNA (FIG. 17).

A summary of the PCR results using different failed forward and reverse primer combinations is provided in Table 6.

The results of multiplex PCR reactions using the ccrAB-F2 forward primer (SEQ ID NO:15) and the ccrAB-R1 reverse primer (SEQ ID NO:18) are summarized in FIG. 16. The SCC Typing multiplex PCR reaction with forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO:3) and reverse primers, mec124b (SEQ ID NO:8) and mec3b (SEQ ID NO:11) in combination with forward primer ccrAB-F2 (SEQ ID NO:15) and reverse primer ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO:18) was able to amplify the correct SCC Type I, II, III, and IV amplicons (lanes 1, 2, 3, and 4, respectively, FIG. 16) and the ccrAB product from a MRSA SCC Type IV strain (lane 4, arrow, FIG. 16). However, these primers cross-reacted with the SCC Type II ccrAB (lane 2, arrow, FIG. 16).

The results of Multiplex PCR reactions using the ccrAB-F4 (SEQ ID NO:17) forward primer (SEQ ID NO:17) and the ccrAB-R1 reverse primer (SEQ ID NO:18) (FIG. 17). The SCC Typing multiplex PCR reaction with forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO:3) and reverse primers, mec124b (SEQ ID NO:8) and mec3b (SEQ ID NO:11) in combination with forward primer ccrAB-F4 (SEQ ID NO:17) and reverse primer ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO:18) was able to amplify the correct SCC Type I, II, III, and IV amplicons (lanes 11, 12, 13, and 14, respectively, FIG. 17) with the ccrAB product from a MRSA SCC Type IV strain was not amplified (lane 14). However, background amplification with human DNA was present (lanes 1 to 10, FIG. 17).

TABLE 6 Failed MRSA Type IV specific ccrAB primers that had amplification issues. Forward primer Reverse primer Amplification Issues ccrAB-F2 (SEQ ID NO: 15) ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO: 18) Type II background ccrAB-F2 (SEQ ID NO: 15) ccrAB-R2 (SEQ ID NO: 19) Type II background ccrAB-F2 (SEQ ID NO: 15) ccrAB-R3 (SEQ ID NO: 20) Type II background ccrAB-F3 (SEQ ID NO: 16) ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO: 18) Type II background ccrAB-F4 (SEQ ID NO: 17) ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO: 18) Type II background ccrAB-F5 (SEQ ID NO: 21) ccrAB-R4 (SEQ ID NO: 22) Human DNA background

(i) ccrAB-F1 and ccrAB-R1

Two primer pairs (Table 7), ccrAB-F1 (SEQ ID NO:14) with ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO:18) and ccrAB-F5 (SEQ ID NO:21) with ccrAB-R5 (SEQ ID NO:23), correctly amplified only the SCC Type IV ccrAB gene individually and in combination with the SCC typing multiplex reaction (FIG. 18).

FIG. 18 depicts the results of Multiplex PCR reactions using the ccrAB-F1 forward primer (SEQ ID NO:14) and the ccrAB-R1 reverse primer (SEQ ID NO:18). The SCC Typing multiplex PCR reaction with forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO:3) and reverse primers, mec124b (SEQ ID NO:8) and mec3b (SEQ ID NO:11) in combination with forward primer ccrAB-F1 (SEQ ID NO:14) and reverse primer ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO:18) was able to amplify the correct SCC Type I, II, III, and IV amplicons (lanes 1, 2, 3, and 4, respectively, FIG. 18) and the SCC Type IV specific ccrAB product from a MRSA SCC Type IV strain (lane 4, arrow, FIG. 18).

(ii) ccrAB-F5 and ccrAB-R5

The ccrAB-F5 (SEQ ID NO:21) and ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO:18) are overlapping primers that utilize the same ccrAB sequence that contains a high degree of variation (FIGS. 14 and 15). We speculate that this ccrAB sequence polymorphism hot spot provides the SCC Type IV specificity.

TABLE 7 MRSA SCC Type IV specific ccrAB primers that successfully amplified. Amplification Forward primer Reverse primer Issues ccrAB-F1 ccrAB-R1 Best; Size of (SEQ ID NO: 14) (SEQ ID NO: 18) amplicon best for descrimination in multiplex ccrAB-F5 ccrAB-R5 Good; Size of (SEQ ID NO: 21) (SEQ ID NO: 23) amplicon too  large for optimal descrimination in multiplex

Example 5

Currently, PCR reactions that only amplify the orfX-SCCmec DNA junction can result in false positives as the parts of the SCCmec DNA containing the mecA gene has the ability to recombine or loop out of the Staphylococcus aureus strain leaving behind an incomplete or non-functional SCCmec DNA (Rupp et al., 2006). Therefore, we chose to add to a multiplex PCR reaction with an additional primer pair (i.e., forward primer and reverse primer) to prevent the false positives (Table 8).

(i) Primer Pair (mecA2-For and mecA2 Rev) Specific for mecA

In this study, we chose two additional primers, mecA2-For (SEQ ID NO:24) (forward primer) and mecA2-Rev (SEQ ID NO:25) (reverse primer) were added to the multiplex mix to prevent these false positives (Table 8). The addition of the mecA primers into the multiplex reaction did not detract from the PCR efficiency and successfully amplified and determine the SCCmec Types, the type IV specific ccrAB amplicon, and the presence of the mecA gene (FIG. 19).

(ii) 5′ UTR 3 and mec124b; 5′UTR 3 and mec3b; ccrAB-F1 and ccrAB-R1

The results of the multiplex PCR reactions with the addition of mecA primers are summarized in FIG. 19. The SCC Typing multiplex PCR reaction with forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO:3) and reverse primers, mec124b (SEQ ID NO:8) and mec3b (SEQ ID NO:11) in combination with forward primer ccrAB-F1 (SEQ ID NO:14) and reverse primer ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO:18) was able to amplify the correct SCC Type I, II, III, and IV amplicons (lanes 1, 2, 3, and 4, respectively) and the SCC Type IV specific ccrAB product from a MRSA SCC Type IV strain (lane 4).

The addition of the mecA forward and mecA reverse primers into the multiplex reaction successfully amplified and determine the SCCmec Types, the type IV specific ccrAB amplicon, and the presence of the mecA gene.

TABLE 8 mecA primers Primer Nucleotide Sequence Name 5′ to 3′ SEQ ID NO. mecA2For GTA CTG CTA TCC ACC SEQ ID NO. 24 CTC AAA CAG mecA2Rev GAA CCT GGT GAA GTT SEQ ID NO. 25 GTA ATC TGG

Example 6

(i) Primer Pair (nuc F1 and nuc R1) Specific for nuc

Primers that will amplify the Staphylococcus aureus nuclease gene or nuc gene were added to the multiplex (Table 9). This provides an additional level of control to the MRSA detection assay to assure that Staphylococcus aureus is present in the sample. Also, this provides the ability to detect MSSA, since this strain would result in no amplification with multiplex assay without the nuc primers. The addition of the nuc primers into the multiplex reaction did not detract from the PCR efficiency and successfully amplified and determine the SCCmec Types, the type IV specific ccrAB amplicon, the presence of the mecA gene, and the presence of the Staphylococcus aureus specific nuc gene (FIG. 20).

The results of multiplex PCR reactions with the addition of nuc primers are summarized in FIG. 20. The SCC Typing multiplex PCR reaction with forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO:3) and reverse primers, mec124b (SEQ ID NO:8) and mec3b (SEQ ID NO:11), forward primer ccrAB-F1 (SEQ ID NO:14) and reverse primer ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO:18), forward primer mecA2-For (SEQ ID NO:24) and reverse primer mecA2-Rev (SEQ ID NO:25) was able to amplify the correct SCC Type I, II, III, and IV amplicons (lanes 1, 2, 3, and 4, respectively, FIG. 20), the SCC Type IV specific ccrAB product from a MRSA SCC Type IV strain (lane 4, FIG. 20), and the mecA gene.

The addition of the nuc forward (nuc F1, SEQ ID NO:26) and nuc reverse (nuc R1, SEQ ID NO:27) primers into the multiplex reaction successfully amplified and determine the SCCmec types, the type IV specific ccrAB amplicon, the presence of the mecA gene, and an additional Staphylococcus aureus specific nuc control.

FIG. 23 also shows Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) Positive Results using a multiplex PCR reaction with forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO:3) and reverse primers, mec124b (SEQ ID NO:8) and mec3b (SEQ ID NO:11), forward primer ccrAB-F1 (SEQ ID NO:14) and reverse primer ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO:18), forward primer mecA2-For (SEQ ID NO:24) and reverse primer mecA2-Rev (SEQ ID NO:25) was able to amplify the correct SCC Type I, II, III, and IV amplicons (lanes 1, 2, 3, and 4, respectively), the SCC Type IV specific ccrAB product from a MRSA SCC Type IV strain (lane 4), and the mecA gene. Also included were nuc forward (nuc F1, SEQ ID NO:26) and nuc reverse (nuc R1, SEQ ID NO:27) primers.

TABLE 9 Staphylococcus specific nuc gene primers Primer Nucleotide Sequence Name 5′ to 3′ SEQ ID NO. nuc F1 GTG CTG GCA TAT GTA SEQ ID NO. 26 TGG nuc R1 CGC TTT AAT TAA TGT SEQ ID NO. 27 CGC AGG

Example 7

As stated in Example 4, CA-MRSA strains have the SCC Type IV and V (type V is rare) and causes a more aggressive MRSA infection due to its association with virulence factors such as Panton-Valentine Leukocidin (PVL) gene and other factors that resist the cells of the human immune system. Currently, in order for a strain to be defined as CA-MRSA, it should possess the SCC Type IV, or V, and the PVL gene. Although CA-MRSA strains are resistant to the β-lactam antibiotics and cause a more aggressive infection, they tend to be susceptible to most other antibiotics used in healthcare. Therefore it is important to determine HA-MRSA from CA-MRSA strains by determining the SCC molecular typing.

(i) Real-Time PCR Assay for PVL Gene

A real-time PCR assay to detect the PVL lukSF gene was designed and validated (Table 10; FIGS. 21 and 22). This assay follows the SCCmec Type IV determination by the multiplex MRSA detection and typing assay to define CA-MRSA.

FIG. 21 depicts Panton-Valentine Leukocidin real-time PCR. A real-time PCR assay was designed to detect the PVL lukSF gene. This assay follows the SCCmec Type IV determination by the multiplex MRSA detection and typing assay to characterize Community-Associated MRSA.

(ii) Standard Curve for PVL Real-Time PCR

FIG. 22 depicts a standard curve of PVL real-time PCR. Both the standard curve and patient samples were tested in duplicate.

TABLE 10 CA-MRSA Panton-Valentine Leukocidin lukS/lukF primers and probe. Primer Nucleotide Sequence Name 5′ to 3′ SEQ ID NO. PVL F-2 AGT CAA ATC ATC AGT SEQ ID NO. 28 TGT TAC ATC A PVL R-2 ATC GGA ATC TGA TGT SEQ ID NO. 29 TGC AG PVL 56-FAM/ATG CAG CTC SEQ ID NO. 30 probe-2 AAC ATA TCA CAC CTG TA/3BHQ_1

Example 8

(i) Multiplex PCR Assay Protocol

This Example provides a protocol for a non-limiting example assay, which may be used to determine a type of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in a biological sample according to present methods. PCR reactions are performed in 30 ml reaction volumes using the following PCR parameters:

TABLE 11 PCR parameters Component Stock Final concentration Extracted DNA 0.2 μg/ml  10 μl Biorad qPCR Mastermix* 2X 12.5 μl  Sa5pUTR 3 (SEQ ID NO: 3) 30 μM 0.6 μl mec 124b (SEQ ID NO: 8) 30 μM 0.1 μl mec 3b (SEQ ID NO: 11) 30 μM 0.6 μl SccIV ccrAB F1 (SEQ ID NO: 14) 30 μM 0.2 μl SccIV ccrAB R1 (SEQ ID NO: 18) 30 μM 0.2 μl nuc F1 (SEQ ID NO: 26) 30 μM 0.2 μl nuc R1 (SEQ ID NO: 27) 30 μM 0.2 μl mecA2 forward (SEQ ID NO: 24) 30 μM 0.1 μl mecA2 reverse (SEQ ID NO: 25) 30 μM 0.1 μl ddH₂O 5.2 μl *2X reaction buffer containing dNTP/dUTP, iTaq, MgCl₂, UNG and stabilizers

Tubes may be reserved for controls. For example, the positive controls may be from plasmid constructs pmecI CLO, pmecII CLO, pmecIII CLO, and pmec IV CLO. Additionally, each positive control contains both the pnucCLO and the pmecACLO plasmid construct. The mecIV specific positive control also contains a third control from the pccrABCLO plasmid construct.

Profile conditions may be carried out on the Rotorgene 3000 or Rotorgene 6000 by the following steps:

TABLE 12 PCR reaction conditions Step Time Temp Reason Hold  3 minutes 94° C. Initial Denaturation Cycling 30 seconds 94° C. Denaturation (40 cycles) 60 seconds 70° C. Annealing Touchdown 1° C. for 12 cycles 60 seconds 72° C. Extension Hold 10 minutes 72° C. Final Extension *Note: PCR products should be saved.

5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO:3) and reverse primers, mec124b (SEQ ID NO:8) and mec3b (SEQ ID NO:11), forward primer ccrAB-F1 (SEQ ID NO:14) and reverse primer ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO:18), forward primer mecA2-For (SEQ ID NO:24) and reverse primer mecA2-Rev (SEQ ID NO:25) was able to amplify the correct SCC Type I, II, III, and IV amplicons (lanes 1, 2, 3, and 4, respectively), the SCC Type IV specific ccrAB product from a MRSA SCC Type IV strain (lane 4), and the mecA gene. Also included were nuc forward (nuc F1, SEQ ID NO:26) and nuc reverse (nuc R1, SEQ ID NO:27) primers.

The protocol includes loading 20 μL of PCR product on a 2.5% agaraose gel using 5 μL of 5× loading dye for each sample and 10 μL of 100 bp ladder in the first lane. Run the gel at 80 volts for 120 minutes.

Amplification at any of the type specific correct base pairs, along with the nuc and mecA indicates a positive sample for Methicillin resistance. For mec IV, an additional amplification of the SCCmecIV ccrAB base pair deems a positive sample for Methicillin resistance.

FIG. 24 depicts Examples of MRSA Negative Results: MRSA SCC type Negative and nuc Positive PCR results indicate the presence of Methicillin-Susceptible Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA).

Although the present inventions have been described in example embodiments, additional modifications and variations would be apparent to those skilled in the art. It is therefore to be understood that the inventions herein may be practiced other than as specifically described. The present embodiments should be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive. Accordingly, it is intended that such changes and modifications fall within the scope of the present inventions as defined by the claims appended hereto. All patents, patent applications, publications and other materials cited herein are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of determining a type of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in a biological sample, comprising the steps of (a) providing a biological sample; (b) performing a multiplex PCR analysis of the biological sample, using (i) a first primer pair comprising a forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and a reverse primer mec124b (SEQ ID NO: 8), (ii) a second primer pair comprising a forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and a reverse primer mec3b (SEQ ID NO: 11), and (iii) third primer pair specific for SCCmec type IV, comprising a forward primer ccrAB-F1 (SEQ ID NO: 14) and a reverse primer ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO: 18), wherein the PCR analysis provides a plurality of amplicons having different sizes; and (c) determining the PCR amplicons with respect to their different sizes so as to reveal if type I, type II, type III or type IV MRSA is present in the biological sample.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the PCR analysis in step (b) further comprises using a nuc-specific primer pair comprising a forward primer nuc F1 (SEQ ID NO: 26) and a reverse primer nuc R1 (SEQ ID NO: 27).
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the PCR analysis in step (b) further comprises using a mecA primer pair comprising a forward primer mecA2 forward (SEQ ID NO: 24) and a reverse primer mecA2 reverse (SEQ ID NO: 25).
 4. A method of determining a type of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in a biological sample, comprising the steps of: (a) providing a biological sample; (b) performing a multiplex PCR analysis of the biological sample, using (i) a first primer pair comprising a forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO: 3), and at least one reverse primer selected from the group consisting of mec124a (SEQ ID NO: 7), mec124b (SEQ ID NO: 8), and mec124c (SEQ ID NO: 9), (ii) a second primer pair comprising a forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO: 3), and at least one reverse primer selected from the group consisting of mec3a (SEQ ID NO: 10), and mec3b (SEQ ID NO: 11), and (iii) a third primer pair comprising a forward primer ccrAB-F1 (SEQ ID NO: 14) and a reverse primer ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO: 18), or a forward primer ccrAB-F5 (SEQ ID NO:21 and a reverse primer ccrAB-R5 (SEQ ID NO: 23); wherein the PCR analysis provides a plurality of amplicons having different sizes; and (c) determining the PCR amplicons with respect to their different sizes so as to reveal if type I, type II, type III or type IV MRSA is present in the biological sample.
 5. The method of claim 4, wherein said biological sample is selected from the group consisting of cervical vaginal swab, pap smear and nasal swab.
 6. The method of claim 4, wherein said first primer pair comprises a forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and a reverse primer mec124b (SEQ ID NO: 8).
 7. The method of claim 4, wherein said second primer pair comprises a forward primer 5′UTR 3 (SEQ ID NO: 3) and a reverse primer mec3b (SEQ ID NO: 11).
 8. The method of claim 4, wherein said third primer pair comprises a forward primer ccrAB-F1 (SEQ ID NO: 14) and a reverse primer ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO: 18).
 9. The method of claim 4, wherein the PCR analysis further uses at least one mecA primer pair to determine β-lactam resistance in the biological sample.
 10. The method of claim 9, wherein said mecA primer pair comprises a forward primer mecA2 forward (SEQ ID NO: 24) and a reverse primer mecA2 reverse (SEQ ID NO: 25).
 11. The method of claim 4, wherein the PCR analysis further uses a Staphylococcus aureus nuc primer pair.
 12. The method of claim 11, wherein said Staphylococcus aureus nuc primer pair comprises a forward primer nuc F1 (SEQ ID NO: 26) and a reverse primer nuc R1 (SEQ ID NO: 27).
 13. The method of claim 4, wherein if said biological sample is determined to have type IV, MRSA, said method further comprises performing a Panton-Valentine Leukocidin (PVL) real-time PCR assay on the biological sample, to determine if the type IV MRSA is Community Associated-MRSA (CA-MRSA).
 14. A method of determining a type of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in a biological sample, comprising the steps of: (a) providing a biological sample; (b) performing a multiplex PCR analysis of the biological sample, using (i) a first primer pair comprising a forward primer 5′UTR 4 (SEQ ID NO: 4), and a reverse primer mec3a (SEQ ID NO: 10), and (ii) a second primer pair comprising a forward primer ccrAB-F1 (SEQ ID NO: 14) and a reverse primer ccrAB-R1 (SEQ ID NO: 18), or a forward primer ccrAB-F5 (SEQ ID NO: 21) and a reverse primer ccrAB-R5 (SEQ ID NO: 23); wherein the PCR analysis provides a plurality of amplicons having different sizes; and (c) determining the PCR amplicons with respect to their different sizes so as to reveal if type I, type II, type III or type IV MRSA is present in the biological sample.
 15. The method of claim 14, wherein the PCR analysis further uses at least one mecA primer pair to determine β-lactam resistance in the biological sample.
 16. The method of claim 14, wherein the PCR analysis further uses a Staphylococcus aureus nuc primer pair.
 17. The method of claim 14, further comprising performing a Panton-Valentine Leukocidin (PVL) real-time PCR assay on the biological sample, to determine if the type IV MRSA is Community Associated-MRSA (CA-MRSA). 